Is it “An Hour” or “A Hour?” (Correct Grammar + Examples)

Which is correct, is it “a hour” or “an hour?” For example, if someone wants to say that we are going to leave in a hour, is that correct? Or is the correct statement that we are going to leave in “an hour?”

Learn how to correctly spell this phrase in this short English grammar lesson.

Which is correct, “a hour” or “an hour?”

The correct answer is “an hour.” While “an” is typically used for words that begin with the five vowels (a, e, i, o, and u), the “h” letter in the word “hour” is silent. Making “an” the correct proceeding verb to use.

Sentence examples using “an hour”

Here are sentence examples using “an hour”:

• We are going to leave in an hour from the airport.
• Our hotel wants us to check out in about an hour.
• We need an hour to get ready and then we’ll be set to go out tonight.

Other words that begin with “h”

What about words like “hotel” or “herb?” How do these work with “a” or “an?” In these examples, the words that have the silent “h” letter in the pronunciation of the word will get “an” associated with them. While the words with a hard “h” letter pronunciation will get the “a” letter.

For example, “Can we grab an herb from the garden?”

And “We need a hotel to stay at tonight.”